Islanders Gameday News: Visiting Chicago in search of points

The (0-2-0) New York Islanders are in Chicago to face the (0-2-1) Blackhawks, and someone has to win. The Isles may see a familiar old foe in Marc-Andre Fleury, so they’d be wise to play shots off the endboards for old time’s sake.

It appears this one is only available through ESPN and its family of networks/streaming platforms/whatever, so adjust accordingly.

FIG Picks can be left here. (Clarence can provide an update in comments to that post when able, and I can update that post.)

Islanders News

• Both Matt Martin and Semyon Varlamov had active sessions during practice yesterday, with Matt Martin taking a regular turn and expected to return to the lineup tonight. [Isles]
• Assuming that’s the case, Martin would come off IR. Potentially to make room, Leo Komarov is on waivers — and so is Dmytro Timashov, apparently to be terminated in his case. [LHH]
• Martin’s return couldn’t come soon enough. [Newsday | Post]
• The game may be exclusive to ESPN tonight, but there is a bonus: at 7 pm on ESPN 2, the investigative E60 program will air a story about the relationship between Brianna LaFontaine and wrestling coach Randel McCoy, who was diagnosed with ALS. Brianna is the daughter of Islanders legend Pat Lafontaine. You can read about the show here and watch a preview clip. It will also be available on ESPN+ if you’re a subscriber.
• Some players who were on a long season-opening road trip for some other team whose name I forget say the Islanders’ road trip could be a blessing in disguise. [Athletic]
• Did you know that in addition to Islanders Anxiety, Dan does an Islanders Award Winners podcast? Here’s a preview of season two, with a reminder that you can catch up on season one. [LHH]
• Prospect Report: “William Dufour, Alex Jefferies, Eetu Liukas keep producing, while Tristan Lennox gets his season started.” [Isles]

Elsewhere

Last night’s NHL scores include the Rangers riding a goaltending theft to beat the Leafs in a wild overtime, and the Flyers handing the Kraken their first blowout loss. Also, I caught some of the Coyotes-Blues and can confirm Andrew Ladd is alive with two functioning knees.

• The Hawks’ 0-2-1 start? It could be even worse than it looks. [Second City Hockey]
• Nikita Kucherov is injured, and his coach affirms it’s not gonna be a short-term thing. [NHL]
• Evander Kane is suspended 21 games for a “substantial” violation of COVID protocols, and while no one is saying officially, it’s rumored to be faking his vaccination card. So many degrees of stupidity, that. [NHL]
• Max Domi is out with broken ribs, which will remove him from Thursday’s Isles-Columbus game. [TSN]
• Which teams are most interested in Jack Eichel? The 32 Thoughts podcast discusses that and other matters. [Sportsnet]
• Even for a basement team, the Sabres had a shockingly small home opener crowd. Kyle Okposo, who scored in the opener to raucous applause from those present, penned a letter to fans. [Die By The Blade]
• There has been an absurd amount of coverage and player-by-player video after the Leafs relaxed their gameday dress code policy. This is what happens when you have Yankee-sized coverage (minus the championships) of a team that has zero in-market competition. [TSN]
• They’re still not disclosing anything other than “personal matters,” but the Canucks have granted Travis Hamonic a temporary leave of absence. He never reported for camp and was placed on waivers. [Sportsnet | Pass it to Bulis]
• Rick Carpiniello will be signing off after 43 years of covering the Smurfs. [Athletic]